He Was
by Cheerfully Cynical
Summary: "Tony was done fighting battles. There was no way to move, no next thing to do, and – at this point – no more f**** to give." Tony was left in the harsh cold of the Siberian Bunker without a way home. Hydra saw their opportunity and took it. Tony was…Who the hell is Tony?
1. Chapter 1

**Title: He Was**

 **Summary:** "Tony was done fighting battles. There was no way to move, no next thing to do, and – at this point – no more f**** to give." Tony was left in the harsh cold of the Siberian Bunker without a way home. Hydra saw their opportunity and took it. Tony was…Who the hell is Tony?

 **Rating by chapter:** T+ (swear words, mentions of torture, gore)

 **Disclaimer:** I do not own ANYTHING. This includes Marvel comics and movies mentioned.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

Tony couldn't feel anything.

The cold had bothered him hours ago but now he was left with an ache in his very bones; something so without pain that he didn't know what to call the sensation. It wasn't peaceful or alarming but simply _there_ on the edge of his subconscious.

He couldn't bring himself to care about the weight of the suit; his own creation stuck on him. There was no backup coming that he was aware of. No doubt the fight knocked his comms and GPS out. FRIDAY had gone silent the moment Steve rammed his shield –

Howard's shield into his chest. If Tony had the energy he would have used it to glare at the gleaming hunk of vibranium left by America's finest. Seeing as the suit was without power, his only option was to look up at the silver ceiling above him.

Sleep was calling him, but honestly Tony couldn't bring himself to care enough about it. If anything, his mind was finally quiet; nothing to worry about when you already fucked it all up.

If Roger's had just told him about his parents. If Tony hadn't mentioned Wanda – or had been given the chance to explain Wanda's situation. If Rogers wasn't best buds with the deadliest assassin in the world. If Tony was fast enough to catch Rhodey. If Rogers listened to one hundred seventeen nations.

If the team listened to Tony for once! If they had the decency to want accountability for their actions! If they didn't have the biggest god damn fight at an _airport_ of all places!

If they _trusted_ each other like Tony trusted them.

What utter _bullshit_.

But it wasn't anger that fueled his thoughts. No, it was disappointment – fear. He could have prevented this – should have been able to prevent this. The Accords were his fault. He had let everyone – the team, American Citizens, Pepper – down.

He should have been better.

The lure of sleep turned in a siren call. He was done fighting battles. There was no way to move, no next thing to do, and – at this point – no more fucks to give.

He closed his eyes and waited for whatever was supposed to happen next.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

Tony woke to footsteps.

It was finally dark in the abandoned HYDRA base, way too dark for Tony to see anything. He could still feel the weight of his suit on him and his injuries were another matter altogether. He was in pain now instead of the numbness he felt before.

He tried to move his arm only to hiss when he realized that the gauntlet had crushed his wrist. Yeah, definitely broken. Wonderful.

Instead of trying anything else that could physically hurt him, he listened to the footsteps getting closer and closer. No doubt Pepper had sent SHIELD agents to him. Even though they had broken up, he knew Rhodey had kept her updated throughout this whole mess.

Only, when he finally caught a glimpse of the people coming towards them, he realized by their weapons that they were not SHIELD issued. Nor were they in any army uniform that Tony recognized.

Shit. This was a rogue organization.

With no weapons, no way to move, and no way to defend himself, he did the next best thing: played dead. Not one of his greatest moments, he had to admit. The great Iron Man, playing dead. But there were at least four people coming towards him. If he was going down, he was going down swinging.

" _He alive?"_

Damn, the soldier was speaking German. Now there was a possibility he was dealing with HYDRA. And, really, how off could he be? This was once their best keep secret. He was sure they would have kept tabs on it.

One of the soldiers drew closer to him, inches away from checking the pulse point on his neck when Tony moved _._ It took all of his remaining will power, but he managed to swing his arm around and slammed his suit's forearm against the guy's head, knocking him out immediately.

" _Don't move!"_

Tony didn't have an option. Even with the adrenaline cursing through his system, he was out for the count. Stars began to dance in his vision. One of them roughly pushed his head to the side, exposing his neck. Within another second, a needle was shoved into his veins.

Even fear couldn't keep Tony awake.

The last thing he remembered was the feeling of a drug wreaking havoc in his system, someone(s?) lifting him – suit and all – and then…

Darkness.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

When Rhodey woke up, someone was squeezing his hand. He groaned, squeezing slightly back, and opened his eyes.

Pepper looked worried, which was something he wasn't ever going to be used to. In all of his years being Pepper's friend, she always had an impressive poker face, especially when dealing with Tony. When he realized why – the hospital room being a big clue – he leaned his head back in his pillow and let out a breathy "shit."

Pepper chucked, but he could tell it was without any humor. "You feeling okay?"

Rhodey glared up at the white ceiling tiles. Considering he still couldn't feel his legs, he couldn't imagine he was doing any better. "Doctor say anything?" He looked around the room quickly, "Where's Tony?"

Pepper squeezed his hand again. When Rhodey looked at again, she had tears in her eyes.

"What happened?" He asked, feeling his heart beating out of his chest. The last thing he remembered was Tony in this very room, looking so guilty that even in Rhodey' drugged test, Rhodey made a joke about Rogers being a self-righteous dick.

Pepper shook her head, biting her lip.

"Pepper," He asked again, this time a little more firm, "What happened?"

"He's missing," She said finally, nearly whispering the words. "FRIDAY can't locate him, half of the Avengers are missing – taken from the Raft, no doubt by the Captain's doing – and I'm stuck here without a way to help him."

"The Accords," Rhodey said without thinking. He winced. "Ross could have-" arrested Tony.

"Ross sent out a whole slew of American Soldiers to Siberia under the guise of arresting Tony for violating the law." Pepper released the death grip on his hand. He immediately missed it. "It wasn't Ross."

Pepper looked close to tears again. "Happy's reviewing the footage that Ross recorded from storming the HYDRA base." Without a word, she pulled out her cell phone and showed him a picture…

"Shit."

The place was _destroyed_. There was clearly a fight there; scorch marks along the ceiling, cement walls and pillars thrown to the ground, _blood_ everywhere – the place looked like a scene out of a horror movie.

The worst was what sat in the middle of picture, as if to mock him. There was no denying the Iron Man shaped crater, not with the blood that was pooled inside of it. With it there were drag marks of someone moving the gold titanium alloy suit. There was no way his best friend could have moved a hunk of useless metal that heavy.

He leaned back in his hospital bed, his head hitting the pillow. Now was not the time to have a mental breakdown.

"It wasn't SHIELD." Pepper whispered, gesturing lightly with her eyes of the security camera behind her in the hallway. "And the only other group that could possibly know because it's theirs-"

Hydra.

"Get me out of this hospital bed." Rhodey demanded, fully awake. He was not letting a god damn Nazi organization that named itself Hydra take his brother. "Now, Pepper."

Pepper opened her mouth and Rhodey feared that he was going to have to call the nurses and demand to be let out himself, but she closed it and nodded. If there was anything the two of them agreed on, it was their friendship with Tony.

She left the room without another word, giving Rhodey only a moment to feel helpless. Rhodey may have been Tony Stark's best friend, but he was a military man as well. He knew death and war; seen them hand in hand and handled them as well as could be expected. He knew chain of commands and how to follow orders. He knew that he should contact the UN and organize a search party, letting it off his hands.

But since this was Tony Stark…He was going to have to let go of his training and listen to his gut.

"Where the fuck would the rest of those idiots have the courage to hide and who would hide them?"

No one answered his muttered curse towards the rogue Avengers, but he didn't expect one. Instead he reached for his own cell phone lying on the hospital bed tray, only to hiss when he realized that it caused his back to flare up.

He took a deep breath. He was paralyzed from the waist down; a useless soldier who had no way to help his friend even if he did manage to find him. What was he thinking?

Ignoring his dark thoughts, he reached for the phone again and connected to the Stark servers over the hospital's WiFi. Instantly, he was greeted with thousands of security cameras around the world, searching for her creator.

"No luck, Fri?" He asked her anyway, watching as FRIDAY changed to a different ATM camera located in Siberia. "Where was Tony headed before all of this happened?"

"Boss was heading to Siberia to help Captain Rogers and The Winter Soldier with Zemo," FRIDAY went oddly silently, as if she was hesitating in telling him something.

She was saved by Pepper, who came back with a doctor and a nurse. It took the both of them only thirty seconds to realize Rhodey wasn't taking no as an answer and soon they were disconnecting him from his IV and getting his discharges papers.

"You will take these pills twice a day," The same nurse told him, handing him a prescription pill bottle with some sort of pain medication. "They'll make you a little drowsy, but it's better than the alternative. You need to have a balanced meal with each otherwise you'll be throwing up."

The nurse glared slightly at him. The only reason Rhodey didn't glare back was both the respect she had gained from him in her short no-nonsense speech and her apparent understanding of the situation. He nodded at her and offered her a quick "of course" in reply.

She brought the wheelchair – how humiliating – over to his bed side and lowered the hospital bed. Without a word, she called over another nurse that was hovering in the doorway. With skill, they transferred him from the bed and into the chair so fast that he only felt a small tinge of pain.

"I wish you the best of luck, Mr. Rhodes," the nurse said, now offering a small smile. She began to walk away, only to turn at the last moment. "I hope you find him."

With that, Pepper grabbed the handles of his wheelchair and began to push him out of the room. "She's the same nurse that worked with Tony after his surgery to remove the reactor," Pepper steered him out of the hospital doors as if this was something normal for her.

Rhodey had never admired Pepper more than this moment. He didn't need pity right now.

"Pepper-"

"Wait until we're out of here," Since when was Pepper the one worried about spies? That was Rhodey's job. In fact, who was running Stark Industries right now?

Finally, they arrived at the front of the SHIELD hospital. Rhodey spotted Happy right away. He was quick to open the side passenger door and – before Rhodey could even think about how embarrassing it was going to be to try and get into the car – Happy put one rail of the wheelchair down and picked him up by his knees and supported his back.

Rhodey blinked, and everyone else was in the car.

"Okay," he said, shaking his head lightly. Man, he was glad he surrounded himself with honest to god good people, "Fri never told me what happened with Zemo _or_ where Captain Righteous went with his war buddy."

Happy let out a loud puff of air. "Buddy, you don't even wanna know. It's a shitstorm."

"I didn't think Steve would let it go that far," Pepper told him, her famous red head temper coming out. "He could have killed him!"

Rhodey's head was spinning. Steve killing Tony? "Somebody tell me!"

Oh, boy did they ever. Rhodey thought he was angry at Steve when the Captain refused to listen to one hundred seventeen nations. Now? Red was flashing through his vision. Rhodey could only the see the picture that Pepper showed him before – of which he thought the whacked out super soldiers attacked them – and could now only see Steve and his best bud, nearly killing his friend.

"Do we have any idea where they are now?" Rhodey bit out, "As much as I hate to admit it, if Hydra has Tony, we need all the firepower we got."

"I can help with that," FRIDAY answered. His cell phone suddenly pinged, and he was greeted to the security video of the outside of the base. "King T'Challa was last seen dropping off Zemo into UN custody. No other planes were spotted leaving the HYDRA base and no footprints were found leaving it."

The time stamp quickly changed. "Approximately twelve hours after the King left, another fighter jet was spotted near the base and I lost the signal."

Rhodey sighed. It made sense that the King of Wakanda would house them. Since Wakanda only barely listens to the rulings of the UN, no one would be allowed to send a drone, let alone a person, out there to check. Meanwhile, no one knew T'Challa was there at the base.

"Okay, we gotta send out a message to T'Challa." Rhodey was quickly developing a headache. "Something friendly. We don't want him to think we're associated with the Accords right now."

"Already on it," FRIDAY replied, showing him lines of code. Rhodey was an engineer, but there was no way that he understood what was going on there. "pushing past Wakanda's firewall servers now."

"Oh yeah, that shows we're friendly," Happy muttered, making a sharp left turn and merging onto eighty. "Let's hack into their network!"

"Boss requested to have a secure line with the King after the Berlin Conference." FRIDAY paused. "What better way to make friends than to admire their network systems?"

Rhodey knew that last part was said by Tony himself, but FRIDAY did it no justice.

"I need to get back to SI," Pepper told them, running a shaky hand through her hair. "I can't deal with this. There's nothing I can do."

Rhodey took her hand once again. "We'll find him," Rhodey promised, "you keep Stark Industries running, okay?"

"Where to then?" Happy asked, only partly interrupting. Honestly, he was never one for pep talks. "Because I'm heading to the compound…"

"That's fine," Pepper replied, almost absent mindedly. No doubt she was planning ways to get around SI press. "I'll borrow a car from Tony's…"

She stopped once again. Rhodey felt her pain. That was Tony's dwelling place; whenever there was something stressful going on, Tony would no doubt be in the lab downstairs, tinkering on something even Rhodey couldn't comprehend. To not see Tony there would be a horrible reminder of the situation he was in.

The drove in silence

Silence that was usually filled with his brother's vibrant voice.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

Tony woke up in a haze of pain.

White light flashed above him, reminding him of harsh desert sands and a kind doctor; of torture and pain and helplessness and fear. Of redemption and revenge. Of love and loss.

White that reminded him of hospital rooms and concerned teammates.

White that had him trying in vain to move his arms off a solid, unforgiving ground. His wrists were held down with a thick metal cuff attached to the same metal table underneath him. His ankles received the same harsh treatment.

"Ah," A lightly accented voice said, causing tony to spasm in his restraints. "The prisoner has awoken. Wonderful."

"Hey, asshole, "Tony said, only now realizing that his words were slurred. Were they still drugging him? "I've been through this gimmick- I don't negotiate with creepy, weird scientists,"

Tony gestured around the room with his eyes. He wasn't going to freak out. He didn't have the luxury of thinking about a disgusting operating table in the middle of nowhere.

"Most who try to kill me end of dying first. So why don't fuck off now and I'll consider not burning this place to the ground later?"

The man moved towards him faster than his drugged brain could process. One moment doctor asshole was behind him, the next he was looming over him.

Jesus Christ, this dude was hit with the ugly stick. Scars marred his face and once blonde hair was now only in rough patches on his head. To complete the look, he wore silver, round glasses like Harry Potter.

"Confident for a man that is restrained to a table, hmm?"

Tony met doctor asshole's gaze, fear only a knot in his stomach, and _spat_ on him. Because, hell, if he was restrained to a table, at least he had one thing left.

Tony had to give it to the man, he calmly took a paper towel from his (holy fuck was that a surgical tray?) and wiped the perfectly aim mucus bowel off of his face.

Without another word, the man took a three-inch-long needle from the surgical tray and filled about ten mm of a clear liquid into it.

"This, Mr. Stark," The man held up the needle as if it was God's will brought down to earth. "Is Hydra's greatest creation. With this, you'll become better than Sargent Barnes – no memories, no ties to your life. With this, you'll be our greatest asset."

"I won't pick up a single screw driver for you," Tony met the man's gaze once again, feeling something inside of him shift, "And I will die before I let Hydra have my weapons."

It might have been his greatest moment.

He had never been so serious in the sight of danger. This was Hydra – the organization that killed almost the whole world, that nearly killed Captain America with his own best bud, and had managed to escape S.H.I.E.L.D's radar for years – this wasn't a time for sarcastic jokes and delusions; this was a time for Tony to give everything he had.

He couldn't become their puppet. He _refused_.

"Such a strong belief," The needle was shoved roughly into his arm, the sting causing him to push away from him, only to be met with metal cuffs, "for such a weak man."

The scientist shoved the plunger down.

 _James Rhodes, Pepper Potts, Happy Hogan, Steve Rogers, James Barnes, Bruce Banner…_

Fire ignited his bones. Screams filled his own ears.

 _James Rhodes, Pepper Potts, Happy Hogan, Steve Rogers, James Barnes…_

He knew nothing but pain and cries and agony; nothing but the metal table beneath and the white light above him.

 _James Rhodes, Pepper Potts, Happy Hogan, Steve Rogers…_

He was Anthony Edward Stark: born of intelligence and made of iron.

 _James Rhodes, Pepper Potts, Happy Hogan…_

He was Iron Man: a hero.

 _James Rhodes, Pepper Potts…_

He was Tony Stark; he had a beautiful woman and a caring best friend. He had people he loved, and they loved him back.

 _James Rhodes._

He was.


	2. Chapter 2

They would come every hour.

His back stung from the whip marks. Thanks to the brilliant work of a half-assed serum, Tony healed faster than any increased metabolized idiot he knew. Within only thirty minutes, he could heal large gashes that went all the way to the bone, heal burns within minutes, and make bruises disappear.

He was the perfect soldier for Hydra.

Stronger and faster than Steve Rogers ever was, he could take down the biggest advisory with ease. With his brutal training, he knew how to kill with one strike. He was unstoppable.

He was Hydra's biggest problem.

With his healing, he was able to regain his memories within hours after being put in the chair. Hydra hadn't updated their style since the Winter Soldier escaped and Tony was very familiar with what Barnes went through now.

But they were getting close. Tony knew that if they increased the electricity they used to fire his neurons, they would succeed in destroying him.

He leaned his head against the cold cement wall behind him.

Rhodey had to be looking for him. He just had to wait it out a bit longer.

Tony heard footsteps from down the hall. They were coming back.

"Up."

Tony didn't hesitate. He didn't have the strength. Without a word, he got up from his safe haven and looked at his jailer, awaiting commands.

"Follow."

Three guns were trained on him; One filled with bullets, another filled with a single vibranium bullet, and one with the highest electricity setting.

He laid down on the metal table, feeling disconnected as they placed the metal cuffs over his wrists. He didn't wince as the jammed an IV into his veins. He didn't move as they pushed more serum into him.

"Increase voltage. Two-minute intervals."

Tony closed his eyes…

And screamed.

 _James Rhodes, Pepper Potts, Happy Hogan, Steve Rogers, James Barnes, Bruce Banner…_

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

"Build it."

It looked at the disassembled weapon in front of him. A standard US government machine gun. It knew what to do.

Its hands put together each part with dedication and care. It could not fail its handlers. It would not fail his handlers. It was doing this for the good of the world.

"Build it."

A Stark Automatic Rifle. Slightly outdated. Modifications could be made. Its handler needed the best. Its handler demanded the best.

A Stark.

Stark.

" _No!"_

"Hold him down!"

"Get him in the chair!"

"Tranq him!"

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

"Increase voltage. Ten-minute intervals."

 _James, Pepper, Happy, Steve, Barnes, Bruce…_

He was Anthony Edward Stark: Iron Man.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

"Build it."

It looked at the disassembled weapon in front of him. A standard US government machine gun. It knew what to do.

"Build it."

A Stark Automatic Rifle. Slightly outdated. Modifications could be made. Its handler needed the best. Its handler demanded the best.

A Stark.

Stark.

Tony grabbed the machine gun and opened fire. Two died that day.

It was a small victory.

"Tranq him! Tranq him!"

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

"Increase voltage. Twenty-minute intervals."

 _Rhodes, Potts, Hogan, Rogers, Barnes, Banner…_

He was Anthony Edward Stark.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

"Build it."

A Stark Automatic Rifle. Slightly outdated. Modifications could be made. Its handler needed the best. Its handler demanded the best.

"Modifications needed. Completion time: Two hours."

"Understood. Proceed."

The sonic neutralizer was complete. The sound waves could incapacitate anyone instantly within twenty feet of the blast.

It received food and water. It was content.

"Build it."

He was.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

"What is your name?"

Its handler was a scientist with his face covered in scars.

"Asset. Ready to comply."

Its handler brought over a red and gold metal arm.

"Assessment?"

It looked at the arm, feeling something. This was familiar. He knew this. He knew what that arm connected to and where the plug integrated with the chest unit of the…

Iron Man.

 _James Rhodes, Pepper Potts, Happy Hogan, Steve Rogers, James Barnes, Bruce Banner…_

"No!"

Tony was shoved into the chair, the cuffs crushing his wrists. He was useless. He was Anthony Edward Stark. He was Tony Stark; he was an inventor. He was Iron Man. He couldn't make weapons.

"Increase voltage. Thirty-minute intervals."

" _I won't do it. I won't build a single thing for you!"_

Doctor Asshole smiled, white teeth nearly sparkling, "Oh Stark, you already have."

Tony screamed.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

T'Challa worried for his Kingdom.

He was King now; his father's legacy passed down to him and the weight of the crown thrust onto him so fast that he found his head still spinning.

The Rogue Avengers were breaking ancient Wakandan tradition by their mere presence. Outsiders were banned from Wakanda and, in the mere hours he was King, he was breaking the ancient laws.

Although Wakanda tradition stated this it was his mother who was the rightful ruler right now, he would soon have to decide what to do with the group he had now acquired.

T'Challa sighed and leaned back in the chair, watching the news networks as they argued about the Accords. While T'Challa agreed wholeheartedly with them, the Accords were becoming a burden that he was not willing to take on.

Without Anthony Stark to be the spokesperson of the new Accords, it was slowly losing its favor. T'Challa feared that he would have to be the one to take up the mantel, exposing Wakanda to the outside world and recruiting new heroes.

"Brother!"

T'Challa activated his beads without thought, not surprised to see his sister, Shuri.

"Miss me already?" He asked, teasing her, "It has been but mere minutes!"

Shuri did not smile, "Someone has gotten into our network and is attempting to open a live feed."

T'Challa wasn't going to doubt his sister. If she was able to block it, she would have done so already. There was no point in delaying the inevitable.

"Allow them onto my personal connection," T'Challa put on his Black Panther mask, "I will speak to this would be hacker."

"Be careful, brother," Shuri replied, "Whoever accomplished this has skills I could not work around. They're smart."

T'Challa nodded and a different face appeared, one he recognized but could not place.

"You're Highness," The man said with an American accent. Just what T'Challa needed, an American. "I apologize for the less than ideal way to talk with you, but I need your help."

T'Challa considered the man. "You were on Iron Man's side at the fight in the airport, no?"

"James Rhodes, sir," Mr. Rhodes gestured down just enough for T'Challa to glimpse the wheelchair the man was sitting on, "You were the last person I can talk to that saw Tony at that bunker."

"The last person?" T'Challa asked, his questions about Stark's sudden disappearance from the Accords sliding into place, "Dr. Stark has not returned?"

"At 0400 hours, a second fighter jet landed after your identified aircraft left. When Ross's men went to – for a lack of better word – apprehend Tony, the only thing there was this-"

Mr. Rhodes pointed with his thumb to the wall behind him. Through a blurry screen, T'Challa caught a glimpse of the familiar red, white, and blue vibranium shield. T'Challa didn't often feel worry, but it was clearly there.

"I don't mean to imply anything, you Highness," Rhodes stared evenly into his gaze, "but Tony isn't just my friend, he's a valuable asset to the world. If any rogue organization gets his hands on him…"

T'Challa nodded, knowing the repercussions of having a man of Stark intellect without a moral compass. Lives could be destroyed; Wakandans included.

"We need the entire Avengers team on this."

T'Challa wanted to be surprised that this man knew about his involvement with the Rogue Avengers, but he found that anyone associated with Tony Stark knew more than most people.

T'Challa sighed and leaned back into his chair, feeling drained. "If I allow this, Wakanda cannot be affiliated."

Rhodes opened his mouth, but T'Challa did not give him the chance, "I cannot allow my people to be discovered. But, if it comes down to it and you are in need of another warrior, know that Black Panther will be on your side."

Rhodes nodded respectfully, "Thank you."

"I will call upon Mr. Rogers and he will speak with you shortly. And – Mr. Rhodes," T'Challa looked the solider in the eye as both a warrior and a King, "Though I do understand that this is an extenuating circumstance, the next time you invade my systems, you will find yourself very unhappy with the results."

Mr. Rhodes only smiled, "Though I would love to take credit, I'll have to hand you over to FRIDAY."

"Hello, your Highness," A female voice spoke, but T'Challa did not see anyone within the camera's view, "I am bosses' AI system. Boss asked me to hack into your systems after the Berlin Conference. Under his protocol, I have connected to your servers."

Though T'Challa knew that Shuri was dying to begin her experimentations with artificial intelligence, she didn't dare do so until she understood exactly what the repercussions of doing so were. Even through generations of Wakandan scientists, none have developed an AI smart enough to integrate and manipulate another system.

"Interesting," T'Challa said, truly fascinated, "Tony Stark's genius was underestimated." T'Challa realized how off topic their discussion had come. "I will allow the connection to the rest of your team now, Mr. Rhodes."

T'Challa stopped the video link and sighed once again. While he didn't have a feeling of bad omens for Wakanda anymore – in fact, this would solve his problem of having the Rogue Avengers he – he feared for the world.

If Tony Stark was truly taken by Hydra, the weapons that man could produce would be earth shattering.

Not willing to delay any longer, he opened the link towards the Captain's private room and prayed to the Bast God that Tony Stark could be saved by his old team.

"Captain…"

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

"Build it."

It looked at the weapon in front of him.

"Modifications needed. Completion time: three hours."

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

Steve Rogers wasn't sure.

He wasn't sure of what to do next, where to go, who to voice his fears to. He was a Captain without a plan, a soldier without his weapon, and a man with a heart so broken that he wasn't sure what to believe in anymore.

He had Bucky back, but at the cost of half of his team's freedom. He knew he was doing the right thing in protecting him, but now that he was essentially stuck on foreign ground he hadn't even heard of, he was lost.

He knew he couldn't stay in Wakanda. He knew he couldn't stop doing missions.

He knew he hurt Tony.

"Steve?"

Steve looked up, glad to hear a familiar voice. "Bucky," Steve looked at the charred remains of his friend's arm. T'Challa had made sure to stop the pain but a replacement had yet to be made. "You feeling alright?"

Bucky didn't answer. He sat down next to Steve and looked out at the Wakanda skyline. Steve had no idea what was running through his head, but he knew that Bucky wasn't particularly happy with what had taken place.

"I don't remember a lot," Bucky said, still not looking at him. "I remember each and every mission they sent me on."

He went silent once again. Steve didn't dare interrupt.

"I get…Glimpses of my old life – glimpses of you," Bucky showed no outward emotion. In fact, he didn't move. Glimpses of a team."

Steve couldn't help himself, he turned towards Bucky as stared. He remembered the Howling Commandos? For a brief moment, Steve felt hopeful. Maybe all of it was worth it, maybe he was going to get his friend back.

"What we did to Stark," Bucky shook his head, "That wasn't a team, Steve. How could you lie to a team member like that? How could you fight him like that?"

Steve knew he wasn't perfect. He knew he had faults. But he also knew that he had to stand up for his beliefs. He wasn't going to let Tony kill an innocent man. He couldn't! How did Bucky not understand that?

"You're innocent, Buck," Steve put a hand on Bucky's shoulder, trying to get him to understand. He felt a desperate need for _someone_ to understand his reasoning. "I couldn't let Tony hurt an innocent man!"

Bucky shoved his hand away with a quick movement. "Tell me, how could you expect a man to stand there and watch someone kill their own parents…and not react."

Steve was speechless. He couldn't speak. It was like he was frozen in the past, feeling guilty as Bucky reprimanded him about trying to join the army. Only this time, it felt like someone was squeezing his heart.

"You had a million chances. Hell, there's no possible way that Stark didn't talk to you before Zemo read that book. Did he not offer you some sort of deal? Did you even read them?"

Steve looked away, feeling guiltier than ever before. He felt disgusted with himself. He called himself Captain, but who was he really leading? The leader should of known every possible route his team could take. Why couldn't he simply read the Accords?

"That's what I thought." Bucky turned back to the skyline. "I'm grateful for this second chance, and I owe you my life, but to leave someone behind like that? I can't support that."

There was a heavy silence. Steve knew nothing he said could justify his actions. The two friends sat by side, yet Steve never felt so far away from him. Tony wasn't the best kind of friend, but he was a friend and team mate, and Steve let him down.

"I'm going to ask T'Challa to put me back in cyro."

"What?" Steve asked, shocked to core, "Buck-"

"I can't worry about some stranger on the street knowing the words."

Steve nodded, trying to wrap his mind around not seeing Bucky once again. This was almost too much. How much more could lose?

"You're not a bad man, Steve," This time, Bucky put his hand on his shoulder. "You stand your ground just as before, but maybe you should be looking at the bigger picture, yeah?"

Steve honestly didn't know whether to laugh or cry. He made his decisions, now it was time to live with them.

He wasn't willing to accept that the Accords are right, but he knew what he did to Tony was unforgivable.

"Buck I-"

"Captain."

It took years living with Tony to not jump at a sudden voice calling your name. However, it was worrying to see T'Challa call on him so soon after arriving in Wakanda.

"Your Highness," He greeted, "is everything alright?"

Everything, it seemed, was not alright.


End file.
